21st Amendment Cline Cellars Syrah California 2007

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Wine maker notes

A large portion of the grapes that made this wine are grown in our cool Sonoma Coast Vineyards that we call the Lazy C and the Lazy P. The combination of warm days, foggy mornings and cool evenings make the Sonoma Coast appellation some of the most highly regarded vineyardland in California. What these vineyard conditions translate into is a Syrah dark in color with deeply concentrated flavors of black cherries and supple tannins. Fruit is also blended from the warm growing areas of Lodi and Contra Costa County. The result is a wine of surprising complexity.

The winemaking techniques we use on our “Cal Syrah” start out by entirely destemming the handpicked grapes and only lightly crushing them to preserve fruit and limit harsh tannins. Then a moderate fermentation temperature is maintained in closed stainless steel tanks with selected cultured yeast. The wine is aged in a variety of different sized oak vessels (1600 - 3000 gallon oak uprights, and 60 gallon barrels) for a minimum of nine to eleven months. This allows our California blend enough time to marry the flavors and soften the structure of Syrah. We’ve blended in small quantities of Grenache and Mourvèdre to increase fruit expression and create an elegant structure.